Diversity

Diversity Assessment

Indiana University East (IU East) Campus Members,

Our Halualani & Associates team is thrilled to be conducting diversity assessment and evaluation work for your campus over the next 19 months. As a diversity analytics research firm that works with higher educational institutions, our team will engage in diversity mapping, retention-graduation mapping, diversity benchmarking (through our Atlas database), and an external evaluation of the Office of Vice President for Diversity, Equity, and Multicultural Affairs (OVPDEMA) for Indiana University campuses.

Indiana University’s Office of Vice President for Diversity, Equity, and Multicultural Affairs (OVPDEMA) proactively reached out to our firm because it felt that an external and evidence-based assessment of diversity and inclusion at Indiana University was needed at this time in order to guide meaningful and responsive change and action for the future. We have prepared the following “Frequently Asked Questions” or FAQ section to help provide key information regarding this project and our process.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) About This Project:

What Kind of Work Will Be Completed?

Specifically, our team will complete the following for your campus:

a mapping of IU East’s diversity and inclusion efforts in the last 5 years;

a mapping of IU East’s retention-graduation efforts in the last 7 years;

We will also complete the following:

a mapping of diversity and inclusion efforts in the last 5 years for the following campuses: IUB, IUPUI, IU Kokomo, IU Northwest, IU South Bend, IU Southeast;

a mapping of retention-graduation efforts in the last 5 years for the following campuses: IUB, IUPUI, IU Kokomo, IU Northwest, IU South Bend, IU Southeast;

a benchmarking of IUB & IUPUI in comparison to 5 of its external peers along key diversity indices;

a diverse faculty recruitment projection for Indiana University;

a diverse student recruitment projection for Indiana University; and

an external assessment of OVPDEMA in terms of its strategic focus, capacity, organizational structure, and activity.

What is Diversity Mapping? What is Retention-Graduation Mapping?

Diversity mapping is a form of inquiry and research methodology with analytical layers and metrics for benchmarking institutional change related to diversity and inclusion (Hurtado & Halualani, 2014). Diversity mapping is a reflexive practice focused on identifying where a college or university is—in terms of values, principles, objectives, goals, outcomes, and resource allocations—with regard to establishing a deeply embedded campus structure grounded in diversity (Halualani, Haiker, and Lancaster 2010). This process, which was created in 2007, when Dr. Halualani served as the diversity leader at San Jose State University, involves a team of researchers from Halualani and Associates evaluating an institution's extant diversity efforts and curricula to gauge that institution's commitment to and investment in diversity and inclusive excellence.

More specifically, diversity mapping entails "taking stock of current diversity efforts and then analyzing such mappings to identify the current status of inclusive excellence at that institution" (Halualani, Haiker, and Lancaster 2010, 127). The process helps higher education institutions locate their actual (not projected) engagement with and implementation of diversity efforts by producing a visual map that reflects all diversity initiatives, programs, events, and even curricula across the institution, at all levels and within all units. Such diversity mapping represents a valuable process of inquiry for any campus beginning to form or refine an institution-wide diversity strategy or master plan. This practice can provide a sense of where the institution has been, where it currently is, and how it has operationalized diversity and inclusive excellence, in both intentional and unintentional ways. This mapping involves more than just taking an inventory or engaging in a diagrammatic exercise; instead, it is a meaningful practice of inquiry through which singular pieces of information that are typically isolated within campus silos are organized and framed in relation to one another. The resulting holistic portrait provides a comprehensive overview of diversity on campus at both structural and thematic levels. The diversity map allows campus leaders to locate duplication in efforts, empty zones or areas of neglect, and practices that are more nominal than functional. As a newer feature, Halualani and Associates will be conducting a retention-graduation mapping of Indiana University campuses as well (which involves using different analytics and metrics associated with persistence to degree attainment, college completion, and student success).

We have written two scholarly journal articles about our process - refer to the following web links:

Why is This Work Important? How Will It Improve Our Campuses?

Diversity mapping leads to institutional change and action. It enables campuses to “see themselves” differently based on their actual/completed actions in relation to diversity and inclusion during a certain time period. Thus, it provides a valuable “pre-measurement” baseline that highlights needed areas for action and improvement as well as extant leverage points. In addition, such a mapping represents an “external” and “objective” assessment conducted by skilled researchers in diversity in higher education (and ones who have implemented diversity strategy at their home institution). Our diversity mapping serves as a precursor to meaningful, targeted, and strategic institutional action with regard to diversity and inclusion. The mapping highlights the “empty zones,” weaknesses, and unanticipated strengths to leverage especially in fiscally challenging times. All of the 35 higher educational institutions that have been mapped by Halualani & Associates, have moved into institutional action and change stages following the mapping process.

What Does the Diversity Mapping Process Entail?

First, in order to reduce the workload on the part of your campus, our team will first employ search engine optimization (SEO) tools to trace and “web-scrape” information related to diversity and inclusion efforts and outcomes of your university through your digital presence (all university websites and depositories), social media, outcome databases (IPEDs), and other forms. We have perfected this mode of data collection so much over the last 8 years that we usually are able to capture 85 - 90% of an institution’s diversity efforts.

The secondary mode of data collection involves us providing an open source, web-based survey link for any campus member to fill out with regard to a diversity effort that they are personally involved with in their unit or department. This survey enables us to capture informal and formal diversity efforts at the unit/departmental level — efforts that often are not documented or recognized by the institution.

After these two modes of data collection are complete, we will compile all of the information into our multi-layer spreadsheet. We will share the full listing of collected efforts with the diversity leader at your campus in order to see if any additions or corrections need to be made.

Once all revisions have been made, our team will run our analytics on the spreadsheet and map out the efforts as well as identify needed actions for change and improvement.

A summary of key findings and recommendations will be produced and presented as the final step.

Who is Halualani & Associates? How Qualified is Halualani & Associates to Complete This Work?

Halualani & Associates is a research firm that was created in 2008 by Dr. Rona T. Halualani and her brother, Roger Halualani. Together, they assembled a highly skilled team of five research associates with Dr. Halualani as the lead researcher and managing principal. Dr. Halualani is a tenured (Full) Professor of Intercultural Communication and Diversity in the Department of Communication Studies at San Jose State University (note: Dr. Halualani earned her Ph.D. in Intercultural Communication from the Department of Communication at Arizona State University in 1998). She has been teaching and researching in the areas of intercultural communication and diversity at San Jose State University since 1998. From 2007 through 2009, Dr. Halualani was appointed by former President (Emeritus) Don Kassing as the Special Assistant to the President, Director of Inclusive Excellence and Institutional Planning in the Office of the President. Through this role, she, along with two of her current research associates, led the creation of the first Diversity Master Plan in the California State University system in 2009. It was during this time that they developed the diversity mapping methodology and process. To date, Dr. Halualani and her team have mapped 35 colleges/universities around the country (ranging from small to mid to large sized, public, private, and faith based types of institutions). Thus, Halualani & Associates represents an extremely experienced and skilled research team to conduct this work for Indiana University.

What is the Time Frame?

Our team will engage in this work from June 2015 through January 2017, with key deliverables being shared with campus along the way. This work is time-intensive and laborious, thereby requiring ample time to produce the most comprehensive analysis and evaluation as possible.

How Can Campus Members Help With This Project?

In your current role (whether student, staff member, faculty member, administrator, alumni member), you can help with this project by participating in and completing the following “Diversity Efforts Survey.” This survey is accessible through the open link below and provides you with an opportunity to describe a diversity effort that you have been involved with in your unit or department at your campus within the last 5 years. There is an email address in that survey for you to send any key documents to a Dropbox account that we have created for your campus.